Bikram Yoga

As I entered through the door, it definitely seemed like I was in the midst of a cult.  Half-naked people lay with their heads pointing towards a long wall filled with mirrors, with a steamy half lit atmosphere that was filled with the sound of breathing.  The heat hit me within the first few steps in the room.  It's wintertime here in Australia (yes, it does get a bit cold in the South Pacific) and yet, in the room, sweat was already coming off the bodies, with an uncomfortable stale smell of old sweat and heat attacking the nostrils.

Yes, I was about to do my first bikram yoga class.  I'd heard it was hot, but this hot was HOT!  The kind of hot that towards the end of the first class, you feel like you're choking and can't breathe hot.  The kind where the body is numb, tingling all over, telling you not to move or you're going to pass out hot.

For some reason, I decided to attend the 6pm class, which turned out to be the one packed full of everyone just off of work.  Probably about 50 people were in the room ready to get to it.  I stuck to the back, so I could watch and learn.  Overall, it was similar to a standard yoga class, apart from the fact that when you tried to grab your foot with your hand, it kept slipping out.  Sweat was everywhere.  Puddles were forming below certain people.  The towel underneath me got thoroughly soaked.  I sweated in places I didn't know was possible.  There was no hope of trying to dry my palms on my shorts after 20 minutes, as my shorts became wetter than a swimsuit in the ocean.

The highlight of the first class is a tie between the water breaks and feeling very loose and flexible.  Some of the positions just didn't seem natural, but the body definitely could move in new ways unlike before.  After 90 minutes of movement, sweating and attempting to balance while looking straight ahead, it was time to lie on the ground and let the body recover.  I don't know if recover is the right word, since just lying there with my heartbeat racing, the body thoroughly whooped, my hands could not remain open.  Just kept cramping up as I searched for normal breathing.  10 minutes later I slowly worked my way up to start the mission of returning to a normal human being.  Quite the experience, of which I ended probably 3-4 pounds lighter, wearing a pair of extremely wet shorts and a sweated soaked towel.  On my walk home, a sense of euphoria him me, with the body feeling tip top and alive.